Whether Beatitude Belongs to God?
Objection 1: It seems that beatitude does not belong to God. For
beatitude according to Boethius (De Consol. iv) "is a state made
perfect by the aggregation of all good things." But the aggregation of
goods has no place in God; nor has composition. Therefore beatitude
does not belong to God.
Obj. 2: Further, beatitude or happiness is the reward of virtue,
according to the Philosopher (Ethic. i, 9). But reward does not apply
to God; as neither does merit. Therefore neither does beatitude.
_On the contrary,_ The Apostle says: "Which in His times He shall
show, who is the Blessed and only Almighty, the King of Kings and
Lord of Lords." (1 Tim. 6:15).
_I answer that,_ Beatitude belongs to God in a very special manner.
For nothing else is understood to be meant by the term beatitude than
the perfect good of an intellectual nature; which is capable of
knowing that it has a sufficiency of the good which it possesses, to
which it is competent that good or ill may befall, and which can
control its own actions. All of these things belong in a most
excellent manner to God, namely, to be perfect, and to possess
intelligence. Whence beatitude belongs to God in the highest degree.
Reply Obj. 1: Aggregation of good is in God, after the manner not of
composition, but of simplicity; for those things which in creatures
is manifold, pre-exist in God, as was said above (Q. 4, A. 2; Q. 13,
A. 4), in simplicity and unity.
Reply Obj. 2: It belongs as an accident to beatitude or happiness to
be the reward of virtue, so far as anyone attains to beatitude; even
as to be the term of generation belongs accidentally to a being, so
far as it passes from potentiality to act. As, then, God has being,
though not begotten; so He has beatitude, although not acquired by
merit.
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